Police have no motive in ex-commissioner's killing

Officials investigate a scene in Atascosa County where former County Commissioner Tommy Shearrer was killed.

Photo By Tom Reel/San Antonio Express-News

A DPS helicopter patrols farmland near the scene of the shooting of Tommy Shearrer in Atascosa County on Oct. 10, 2012. The former Atascosa County commissioner was shot and killed in his pickup about four miles north of Pleasanton.

Tommy Shearrer

Photo By Tom Reel/San Antonio Express-News

People gather at the home of shooting victim Tommy Shearrer in Atascosa County on October 10, 2012. The former Atascosa County commissioner was shot and killed in his pickup about four miles north of Pleasanton.

Photo By Tom Reel/San Antonio Express-News

One of several homes along the St. Augustine road which is marked with the family name. Shooting of Tommy Shearrer in Atascosa County on October 10, 2012. The former Atascosa County commissioner was shot and killed in his pickup about four miles north of Pleasanton.

PLEASANTON — On a country road lined with relatives' homes and fewer than five miles from his own house, prominent Pleasanton businessman, volunteer and former Atascosa County commissioner Tommy Shearrer, 55, was found shot to death in his pickup.

The 8:15 a.m. discovery Wednesday on St. Augustine Road near FM 3006 shocked the tight-knit community. “Tommy taught adult Sunday school at the church,” said a friend, Odis White. “He's very involved and just a great guy. I just can't believe it.”

Officials released few details. Atascosa County Chief Deputy David Soward said investigators had no motive but wanted to talk to Manuel De Los Reyes Galeas, 19, of San Antonio about the case.

“He's just a person of interest, but it's very pertinent that we locate him,” Soward said. “He is a suspect in a drive-by shooting that happened about 30 minutes earlier in South Bexar County.”

Around 7:45 a.m., Galeas is believed to have visited his girlfriend's house in the 25000 block of U.S. 281, near the Atascosa-Bexar County line, Bexar County sheriff's Detective Louis Antu said.

“He tried to make contact with her, she declined, and then he began shooting at her” in her driveway, Antu said. “She went inside the house, and he got in his vehicle and drove south, towards Atascosa County.”

Officials said Galeas' vehicle was found wrecked and abandoned but wouldn't say where.

Speculation on the crime spread throughout the day, with one theory being that Shearrer stopped to help the teen. Attempts to reach Galeas' girlfriend or anyone at the house where the shooting occurred weren't successful. Children's toys were strewn across the lawn and a large iron fence blocked the driveway in the afternoon.

“Everyone out here knows each other because there's only two stores, so you see your neighbors,” said Erica Martin, who lives nearby. “I've never even heard of (Galeas) though. It's scary that he's still out there.”

Shearrer's ties to the community were deep and his family had lived in the area for generations. Atascosa County Sheriff Tommy Williams said Shearrer was his nephew. He asked that Shearrer's widow and family be given privacy.

“I've known the man all my life. I went to high school with him,” Soward said. “A lot of us are really shocked about it.”

Williams said the Texas Rangers and “other agencies” were assisting in the investigation. Deputies blocked access to the shooting scene as helicopters flew overhead in search of Galeas.

Neighbor and family friend Louis Rodriguez said he had just watched Shearrer on ABC's Nightline on Friday night, a segment on cloud-seeding, and had planned to tease him about it.

Cloud-seeding was just one of several Shearrer business ventures. Others included ranching, investments in construction and the Wilco Peanut Co.

Shearrer was a county commissioner for eight years, a former chairman of the Alamo Area Council of Governments and served on the board of the Evergreen Underground Water Conservation District.

“There was an old saying: ‘If you want to get something done, find someone who is really busy' — Tom was one of those people,” the water district's general manager, Mike Mahoney, said.

Mahoney credits Shearrer for updating the district's operations to the “cutting edge,” attracting international attention.

“He was genuine,” said Darrell Brownlow, who sat next to Shearrer for four years on the district's board. “He showed a sincere interest and he worked hard.”

There wasn't any one thing that James Warnken, 58, of Wilco Peanut Co. could pinpoint on what Shearrer's loss will mean to the community.

“There's going to be a huge hole,” Warnken said. “It will be felt in so many ways for a long time.”